Chapter 136: Time to Race!
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Prize Pool: 18,600,000 Yuan
Secondary Opportunity: Public Recognition
Special Fate Connection Detected: Chi Lingxi
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Shen Tian’s eyes paused on the final line.
"Chi Lingxi is there?"
[She will be.]
Xu Ning waved her hand.
The screen changed.
It displayed a map of the abandoned highway and several nearby access roads.
[One of her classmates convinced her to attend.]
[The classmate’s new boyfriend is participating.]
[Based on the current Fate trajectory, his vehicle will lose control during the race.]
Shen Tian’s expression became more serious.
"Will Chi Lingxi be inside it?"
[Yes.]
Shen Tian sighed as he turned off the shower.
"Alright, let’s do this."
. . .
The underground garage extended beneath nearly half the estate.
Rows of luxury vehicles rested beneath white lights.
Some were elegant.
Some were armored.
Others were built almost entirely for speed.
Shen Tian walked past several supercars.
Xu Ning floated beside him.
[The race route includes a seven-kilometer straight, several mountain curves, and an unfinished overpass.]
"Then I need something fast but stable."
He passed a bright red hypercar.
Too obvious.
A white track car.
Too light.
Then he stopped.
A black Koenigsegg Jesko Absolut rested near the rear of the garage.
Its polished body reflected the overhead lights.
The vehicle looked less like a car...
And more like a weapon designed to cut through air.
Shen Tian smiled.
"This one."
[An excellent choice.]
He entered.
The engine came alive with a deep mechanical roar.
At the mansion’s rear gate...
Xu Ning disabled the departure alert for exactly three seconds.
The gates opened.
The black hypercar slipped through.
. . .
Far outside the city...
The abandoned industrial highway had transformed.
Hundreds of vehicles filled the surrounding lots.
Colored lights glowed beneath modified cars.
Music thundered from enormous speakers.
Spectators stood behind temporary barriers, shouting over the sound of engines.
Money changed hands constantly.
Some people placed bets through phones.
Others handed bundles of cash directly to organizers.
Security guards watched the entrances.
Lookouts remained stationed along nearby roads.
This was not a small gathering.
It was one of the largest illegal races the district had hosted in years.
Chi Lingxi stepped out of a dark blue coupe.
The instant her shoes touched the ground...
She regretted coming.
The music was too loud.
The crowd was too large.
The air smelled of gasoline, cigarette smoke, and overheated tires.
Men shouted at one another across the road.
Several women posed beside expensive cars while photographers surrounded them.
Chi Lingxi tightened her grip around her bag.
Heavy Makeup Girl came around the vehicle.
"Isn’t this amazing?"
Chi Lingxi looked toward two men arguing beside a stack of cash.
"...That’s not the word I would use."
The other girls climbed out behind them.
They were far more excited.
"Look at all these cars!"
"Is that a Lamborghini?"
"Take a picture of me!"
Heavy Makeup Girl laughed.
"Come on. My boyfriend is waiting."
They moved through the crowd.
Chi Lingxi remained in the middle of the group.
Every few seconds...
Someone bumped into her.
She apologized even when it wasn’t her fault.
Eventually, they reached the starting area.
Heavy Makeup Girl’s boyfriend leaned against the same red sports car shown in the photograph.
He removed his sunglasses despite it being night.
"There you are."
Heavy Makeup Girl immediately hugged him.
"We came early."
"Good."
He looked over the rest of the group.
His gaze lingered on Chi Lingxi.
Heavy Makeup Girl noticed.
Her smile stiffened slightly.
"This is Chi Lingxi."
The boyfriend straightened.
"I’ve heard about you."
Chi Lingxi gave a polite nod.
"Hello."
He smiled.
"You nervous?"
"I’m not racing."
"Neither are most people."
He gestured toward the red car.
"But you’ll get a better view from inside."
Heavy Makeup Girl looked surprised.
"What?"
Her boyfriend shrugged.
"I need a passenger."
"Why?"
"For balance."
That made no sense.
Even Heavy Makeup Girl seemed to realize it.
"You told me I’d be riding with you."
"I changed my mind."
His gaze returned to Chi Lingxi.
"She looks lighter."
Heavy Makeup Girl’s expression darkened.
Chi Lingxi immediately shook her head.
"No. I’ll watch from here."
The boyfriend laughed.
"Scared?"
"Yes."
Her honest answer caught him off guard.
Chi Lingxi continued.
"And I don’t see a reason to pretend otherwise."
One of the girls tried not to laugh.
Heavy Makeup Girl quickly stepped closer to her boyfriend.
"I’ll ride with you."
He looked annoyed.
Before he could respond...
One of the organizers shouted.
"Drivers! Final registration!"
The boyfriend cursed quietly.
"Damn..."
He looked at Heavy Makeup Girl.
"Fine. Get in when they call us."
Her smile returned.
Chi Lingxi felt relieved.
But the relief didn’t last.
An organizer approached the group.
"Passenger rules changed."
"What?"
"Second section is a relay checkpoint. Each registered team needs two passengers for weight verification."
The boyfriend looked toward Chi Lingxi again.
Heavy Makeup Girl forced a smile.
"Lingxi can come."
Chi Lingxi stared at her.
"You just said we were only watching."
"It’ll be one short ride."
"During an illegal race."
"My boyfriend knows what he’s doing."
The boyfriend patted the car’s roof.
"I’ve driven this route before."
That was also untrue.
He had only practiced part of it.
Chi Lingxi looked toward the crowd.
Her friends were already encouraging her again.
"You’ll be fine."
"We’ll all be watching."
"It’ll be exciting."
"Please?"
Chi Lingxi felt trapped.
She didn’t want to embarrass Heavy Makeup Girl in front of her new boyfriend.
She didn’t want the group to accuse her of ruining the evening.
Most of all...
She wanted to leave.
But she had come with them.
Their driver had disappeared into the crowd.
Her phone had almost no signal.
After a long hesitation...
She quietly said,
"...Only until the checkpoint."
Heavy Makeup Girl smiled.
"Exactly."
The boyfriend opened the passenger-side door.
"Get in."
Chi Lingxi looked at the car.
A deep sense of unease settled in her chest.
Nearby...
Yun Wanhe stood beside the silver sports car.
He had witnessed the entire conversation.
His eyes narrowed when Chi Lingxi entered the red vehicle.
"That fool..."
He could tell from the boyfriend’s posture that he lacked true confidence.
His breathing was too quick.
His hands moved constantly.
He kept checking the other drivers.
A skilled driver respected the road.
An insecure one watched everyone else.
Yun Wanhe stepped forward.
"Chi Lingxi."
She looked toward him.
Her expression became guarded.
Heavy Makeup Girl frowned.
"Why are you here?"
Yun Wanhe ignored her.
He looked directly at Chi Lingxi.
"You shouldn’t ride with him."
The boyfriend’s face darkened.
"Who are you?"
"Someone who understands that you’re pretending to be more capable than you are."
The crowd nearby reacted immediately.
Several people laughed.
The boyfriend stepped away from his car.
"What did you say?"
Yun Wanhe remained calm.
"You heard me."
Chi Lingxi sighed.
"Yun Wanhe..."
Yun Wanhe frowned.
"I’m trying to help you."
Chi Lingxi looked away.
"I didn’t ask."
She really hated him...
The words struck harder than she intended.
Yun Wanhe’s expression stiffened.
Heavy Makeup Girl crossed her arms.
"Go bother someone else. My boyfriend is a real racer."
Yun Wanhe looked at the red vehicle.
Then at the driver.
"No. He’s a boy with borrowed confidence."
The boyfriend shoved him.
Or tried to.
Yun Wanhe didn’t move.
The boyfriend’s hand felt as though it had struck a wall.
Yun Wanhe slowly looked down at it.
For a moment...
His eyes became cold.
Then he remembered the tournament.
If a fight broke out...
He might get kicked out...
He stepped back.
"I’ll prove it during the race."
The boyfriend laughed.
"You’re entering?"
Yun Wanhe held up his registration band.
"Yes."
"Good."
The boyfriend returned to his car.
"I’ll enjoy watching you disappear in my mirrors."
Yun Wanhe smiled faintly.
"You won’t see me long enough."
He walked away.
Chi Lingxi watched him for a moment.
Despite her frustration with him...
His warning had increased her unease.
The prize pool continued growing.
Every few minutes, the large electronic board changed.
15,200,000 Yuan
Then...
16,750,000 Yuan
Finally...
After another sponsor arrived...
18,600,000 Yuan
The crowd erupted.
Yun Wanhe stared at the number.
His confidence became absolute.
"This is enough. Tonight changes everything."
An organizer approached.
"Car number thirty-two."
Yun Wanhe looked over.
"You’re starting in the second row."
"Fine."
"Payment?"
Yun Wanhe handed over the last of the cash he had borrowed.
The organizer counted it.
"You’re fully registered."
As he walked away...
The announcer’s voice thundered through the speakers.
"Twenty minutes until the first and only championship race! Thirty-six drivers! One winner! Eighteen million, six hundred thousand yuan!"
The crowd roared again.
Yun Wanhe entered the silver car.
He placed his hands on the steering wheel.
The material felt unfamiliar.
The layout was simple.
Pedals.
Gears.
Mirrors.
A machine built by mortals.
But the principles were universal.
Speed.
Momentum.
Balance.
Timing.
He closed his eyes.
His spiritual perception spread through the car.
He felt every vibration in the engine.
Every rotation of the tires.
Every small imperfection in the road beneath him.
His smile returned.
"Easy."
Then...
A new sound rolled across the gathering.
It began far away.
Low.
Controlled.
Different from the modified engines surrounding them.
One by one...
People turned toward the entrance.
A black hypercar approached through the darkness.
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(Author’s Note: IMPORTANT!)
SEND POWESTONES!!!
ALL SUPER GIFTS (Magic Castle, Space Ship, Golden Gachapon) = MORE ChapterS!